Beginning about 1948, Motherwell began making oil sketches and paintings that evolved into a series of more than one hundred variations on a theme he called Elegies to the Spanish Republic. Initially inspired by the Spanish Civil War (1936–39) and contemporary poetry, his Elegies constitute an extended abstract meditation on life and death. Throughout the series, horizontal white canvases are divided rhythmically by two or three freely drawn vertical bars and punctuated at various intervals by ovoid forms. The paintings are most often composed entirely of black and white—the colors of mourning and radiance, death and life. Motherwell remarked on the entanglement of those forces as a metaphor for his understanding of the experience of being alive.
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Inscription: Signed and dated (verso, on horizontal stretcher): Motherwell 1961
private collection, New York (1961–65; their gift to MMA)
New York. Sidney Janis Gallery. "10 American Painters," May 7–June 2, 1962, no. 8 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, No. 70").
New York. Sidney Janis Gallery. "New Paintings and Collages by Robert Motherwell," December 4–29, 1962, no. 2 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, No. 70").
New York. Sidney Janis Gallery. "11 Abstract Expressionist Painters," October 7–November 2, 1963, no.13 (as "Elegy To The Spanish Republic #70," lent by the artist).
New York. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. "Guggenheim International Award, 1964," January 16–March 29, 1964, no. 78 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70," lent by the artist, courtesy Marlborough, New York).
Honolulu Academy of Arts. "Guggenheim International Award, 1964," May 14–July 5, 1964, no. 78.
Berlin. Akademie der Künste. "Guggenheim International Award, 1964," August 21–September 15, 1964, no. 78.
Ottawa. National Gallery of Canada. "Guggenheim International Award, 1964," October 5–November 9, 1964, no. 78.
Sarasota. John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art. "Guggenheim International Award, 1964," January 16–March 14, 1965, no. 78.
Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Buenos Aires. "Guggenheim International Award, 1964," April 20–May 20, 1965, no. 78.
Museum of Modern Art, New York. "Robert Motherwell," October 1–November 28, 1965, no. 59 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic LXX," lent by the artist, courtesy of Marlborough-Gerson Gallery, New York).
Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. "Robert Motherwell," January 7–February 27, 1966, no. 53 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic LXX," lent by the artist, courtesy of the Marlborough-Gerson Gallery Inc., New York City).
London. Whitechapel Gallery. "Robert Motherwell," March 17–April 17, 1966, no catalogue.
Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels. "Robert Motherwell," May 5–June 5, 1966, no catalogue.
Essen. Museum Folkwang. "Robert Motherwell: Gemälde, Collagen, Zeichnungen," July 2–August 14, 1966, no. 53 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republik LXX," lent by the artist, courtesy of the Marlborough-Gerson-Gallery, New York).
Turin. Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna. "Robert Motherwell," September 27–October 30, 1966, no. 53 (as "Elegia per la Repubblica Spagnola LXX," lent by the artist, courtesy of the Marlborough-Gerson Gallery, New-York).
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "New York Painting and Sculpture: 1940–1970," October 18, 1969–February 8, 1970, no. 256 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70").
National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. "Great American Paintings from the Boston and Metropolitan Museums," November 30, 1970–January 10, 1971, no. 98 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70").
Saint Louis, Mo. City Art Museum. "Great American Paintings from the Boston and Metropolitan Museums," January 28–March 7, 1971, no. 98.
Seattle Art Museum. "Great American Paintings from the Boston and Metropolitan Museums," March 25–May 9, 1971, no. 98.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The World of Balenciaga," March 23–September 9, 1973, not in catalogue.
Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts. "Aspects of Postwar Painting in America: In Observation of the Bicentennial Year 1976," January 17–February 29, 1976, unnumbered cat. (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70").
Albany. New York State Museum. "New York: The State of Art," October 8–November 27, 1977, extended to January 15, 1978, no. 538 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70").
National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. "American Art at Mid-Century: The Subjects of the Artist," June 1, 1978–January 14, 1979, no. 6 (as "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, No. 70").
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Yves Saint Laurent: 25 Years of Design," December 14, 1983–September 2, 1984, unnum. checklist (installed in galleries of Costume Institute exhibition).
New York. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. "Robert Motherwell," December 7, 1984–February 3, 1985, no catalogue.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Selection Three: Twentieth-Century Art," October 22, 1985–January 26, 1986, no catalogue.
[I.]rving [H.] [S.]andler. "Reviews and Previews." Art News 61 (Summer 1962), p. 16, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70".
"The Deepest Identity." Newsweek (December 10, 1962), p. 94, ill. (installation photo).
Irving Hershel Sandler. "New York Letter." Quadrum 14 (1963), p. 116.
Sidney Tillim. "Month in Review." Arts Magazine 37 (January 1963), p. 40, calls it "Elegy No. 70".
Michael Fried. "New York Letter." Art International 7 (January 25, 1963), pp. 68–69, ill., calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, No. 70" in the caption and "Elegy No. 70" in the text.
Irving Sandler. "In the Art Galleries." New York Post Magazine (February 2, 1964), p. 14, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70".
Lawrence Alloway. Guggenheim International Award, 1964. Exh. cat., Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. New York, 1964, pp. 13, 31, no. 78, ill. p. 60.
Robert Motherwell. "Two Famous Painters' Collection." Vogue 143 (January 15, 1964), p. 90, ill. pp. 89, 91 (color, installation photos), calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, Number 70".
"Guggenheim Awards." Oklahoma World (January 19, 1964), p. E14.
Andrew Hudson. "Hanging Dims Motherwell Show." Washington Post (October 10, 1965), p. G7.
H. H. Arnason. "Robert Motherwell: The Years 1948 to 1965." Art International 10 (April 20, 1966), p. 30.
Luigi Mallé. Robert Motherwell. Exh. cat., Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna. Turin, 1966, pp. 12, 19, no. 53, pl. 41.
Keith Roberts. "Current and Forthcoming Exhibitions: London." Burlington Magazine 108 (May 1966), p. 274, fig. 82, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic LXX".
Mahonri Sharp Young. "The Metropolitan Museum of Art Centenary Exhibitions I. The New York School." Apollo 90 (November 1969), p. 432, fig. 11, calls it "Elegy of the Spanish Republic, 70".
Thomas N. Maytham. Great American Paintings from the Boston and Metropolitan Museums. Exh. cat., National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. Seattle, 1970, pp. 19, 149–51, no. 98, ill.
Harry Rand. "The 1930s and Abstract Expressionism." The Genius of American Painting. Ed. John Wilmerding. New York, 1973, ill. p. 284.
Henry Geldzahler in "Twentieth Century Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Notable Acquisitions, 1965–1975. New York, 1975, p. 205, ill. (upside down), calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70".
Frank O'Hara. Art Chronicles 1954–1966. New York, 1975, p. 74, fig. 3, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic LXX".
Robert C. Hobbs. "Motherwell's Concern with Death in Painting: An Investigation of His Elegies to the Spanish Republic, Including an Examination of His Philosophical and Methodological Considerations." PhD diss., University of North Carolina, 1975, pp. 161, 260–61, pl. 39, calls it "Elegy 70".
Robert C. Hobbs inRobert Motherwell. Exh. cat., Städtische Kunsthalle. Düsseldorf, 1976, pp. 26–27, 34, ill. p. 28.
E. A. Carmean Jr. "Robert Motherwell's Spanish Elegies." Arts Magazine 50 (June 1976), pp. 96–97, ill., calls it "Spanish Elegy No. 70".
H. H. Arnason. Robert Motherwell. New York, 1977, p. 46, pls. 85 (color), 181 (installation photo, Exh. New York 1965).
E. A. Carmean Jr. inAmerican Art at Mid-Century: The Subjects of the Artist. Exh. cat., National Gallery of Art. Washington, D.C., 1978, pp. 97, 112–114, 116–17, 119, figs. 13, 21 (installation photo Exh. New York 1965), identifies this work as an enlargement of a smaller Elegy painting; notes the similarities between the left side of this painting to "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, No. 78" (1962, Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven) and "The Spanish Death" (1975, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig, Vienna).
Peter Morrin. "Robert Motherwell." Arts Magazine 54 (September 1979), p. 13, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic #70".
E. A. Carmean Jr. "Chronology." Robert Motherwell: Reconciliation Elegy. New York, 1980, p. 81, ill. p. 66, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, No. 70".
H. H. Arnason. Robert Motherwell. 2nd rev. ed. (1st ed., 1977). New York, 1982, p. 46, figs. 135 (color), 189 (installation photo Exh. Cambridge 1963), 220 (installation photo, Exh. New York 1965).
Kathleen Howard, ed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide. New York, 1983, p. 422, no. 25, ill. (color), calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70".
Frank O'Hara. Standing Still and Walking in New York. Ed. Donald Allen. San Francisco, 1983, p. 151.
Harry F. Gaugh. "Elegy for an Exhibition." Art News 85 (March 1985), p. 74.
Eugene Victor Thaw. "The Abstract Expressionists." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 44 (Winter 1986–87), p. 39, 43, fig. 32 (color), calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 70".
Lisa Mintz Messinger in20th Century Art: Selections from the Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Vol. 2, Painting: 1945-1985. New York, 1986, pp. 40–41, ill. (color, overall and detail).
William S. Lieberman in20th Century Art: Selections from the Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Vol. 2, Painting: 1945–1985. New York, 1986, p. 6, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic".
Michael Plante inDefinitive Statements, American Art: 1964–66. Exh. cat., David Winton Bell Gallery, Brown University. Providence, R.I., 1986, p. 13.
Matt Damsker. "The Met Goes Modern: New Wing a Treasure Box, Even If Collection Has Gaps." Hartford Courant (February 11, 1987), p. C7 (possibly this work), calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic".
Maureen Mullarkey. "Tuesday at the Met." Hudson Review 40 (Summer 1987), pp. 201–2, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic".
Marcelin Pleynet. Robert Motherwell. Paris, 1989, pp. 42, 56, ill. p. 93 (color), calls it "Elégie à la République espagnole no. 70 (Elegy to the Spanish Republic no. 70)".
Marcelin Pleynet. "Art and Literature: Robert Motherwell's 'Riverrun'." Interpreting Contemporary Art. Ed. Stephen Bann and William Allen. New York, 1991, pp. 12–13, ill.
Kate F. Jennings. "Robert Motherwell: A 20th Century Legacy." Greenwich News (July 25, 1991), p. 19, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic LXX".
Claude Cernuschi. Jackson Pollock: Meaning and Significance. New York, 1992, pp. 226, 230, fig. 86.
Brad Gooch. City Poet: The Life and Times of Frank O'Hara. New York, 1993, p. 394.
Joseph J. Schildkraut, Alissa J. Hirshfeld, and Jane M. Murphy. "Depressive Disorders, Spirituality and Early Deaths in the Abstract Expressionist Artists of the New York School." Depression and the Spiritual in Modern Art: Homage to Miró. Ed. Joseph J. Schildkraut. West Sussex, 1996, p. 208, fig. 18-16.
Marcelin Pleynet. "Art et Littérature: Riverrun." La Nouvelle Revue Française nos. 546–47 (July–August 1998), p. 88, reprint of Ref. Pleynet 1989; calls it "Élégie à la République espagnole no 70".
Jean-Luc Chalumeau. Motherwell: 1915–1991. Paris, 1998, p. 7, colorpl. 21.
Donna M. Binkiewicz. Federalizing the Muse: United States Arts Policy and the National Endowment for the Arts, 1965–1980. Chapel Hill, 2004, pp. 100, 248 n. 27, fig. 4.2, calls it "Elegy to the Spanish Republic #70".
Jack Flam, Katy Rogers, and Tim Clifford. Robert Motherwell Paintings and Collages: A Catalogue Raisonné, 1941–1991. Vol. 2, Paintings on Canvas and Panel. New Haven, 2012, pp. 140–42, no. P220, ill. (color).
Jack Flam in Jack Flam Katy Rogers and Tim Clifford. Robert Motherwell Paintings and Collages: A Catalogue Raisonné, 1941–1991. Vol. 1, Essays and References. New Haven, 2012, pp. 10, 98, fig. 81 (color), notes that after finishing this work, the artist painted out a number of the original black splash marks and added others after he first finished it.
Max Hollein. Modern and Contemporary Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York, 2019, ill. p. 102 (color).
Douglas Dreishpoon. Helen Frankenthaler: Painting Without Rules. Ed. Douglas Dreishpoon. Exh. cat., Palazzo Strozzi, Florence. Florence, 2024, p. 33, fig. 10 (color, installation photo, Frankenthaler and Motherwell's townhouse).
Robert Motherwell (American, Aberdeen, Washington 1915–1991 Provincetown, Massachusetts)
1965
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